Mo The Schmo
by Romantique The Original
Summary: A sequel to "Sore Subject." Tami's old flame returns to Dillon, and Coach is not happy to hear the news. Poor Julie is caught in the crossfire.    There's some Coach/Tami loving, but nothing graphic.   A re-post due to technical difficulties.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Mo The Schmo (1/3)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Pairing.

Rating: T for the Chapter.

Summary: A sequel to "Sore Subject." Tami's old flame returns to Dillon, and Coach is not happy to hear the news. Poor Julie is caught in the crossfire.

Disclaimer: This Friday Night Lights fan fiction occurs at the beginning of Season 4 which has yet to air.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_Applebees_

_Dillon, Texas_

The customer traffic at Applebees was slower than usual, even for a typically slow Wednesday. By the dinner shift, the restaurant was pretty much empty, except for a lone male customer seated at the bar. A sign of the tough economic times, even the new $10.00 dinner specials and the national advertising campaign was failing to pull the regular customers in.

Julie Taylor leaned her weight against the hostess station, staring out the big, plate glass windows and into the restaurant's vast, empty parking lot. Her tips were off again this month, and she wondered how she was ever going to make this month's car payment. She had already dipped into her dwindling savings last month to make her big, semi-annual car insurance payment, and she did not want to ask her folks for help. They were already making half her car payment; and during the summer, the school district instituted across-the-board pay cuts for all school personnel. Both of her parents had been hit with the cut. And yet, unlike so many in the small town of Dillon, Texas, at least Julie and her parents still had their jobs.

Lost in thought, she then wondered if she would ever be able to go to college and get out of this town. It was always assumed she would go to college directly after high school, but with the uncertainties that came with this great recession, she began to doubt if a future that included college was indeed assured. After all, her parents, although extremely middle class and well-educated, were far, far from wealthy. Now that they had her baby sister Grace to raise, her lock on a _'college of her choice'_ education was in real danger of becoming a faint memory.

Once resentful of her sister's surprise arrival, or what sometimes felt like encroachment upon her life, Julie had come a long way. She had come to truly love her sister, and she also loved watching her parents deal with the day-to-day challenges of balancing work with raising a family. Somehow, Grace brought the family closer together. Julie even had the chance to see a much softer side of her father, the football coach, making him an even better role model to her, and especially to her boyfriend, Panther quarterback Matt Saracen.

A future with Matt seemed uncertain as well, as he was older than she. She had seen friends break up after one or both of the couple graduated from high school. Everything seemed uncertain, as her mind suddenly returned to her present, empty surroundings at the restaurant.

Then, suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a car pull up in front of the restaurant.

"_Wow,"_ she said to herself.

The car was a sleek, black Mercedes, a newer SL model she surmised. She and Matt were into high-end dream cars, and this was one of their favorites. Julie watched as a tall, thin man in a black cowboy hat stepped out of the car and walked towards the entrance of the restaurant. She hurried toward the front doors with a menu in hand, greeted the man, and led him to the nearest table at her station.

"Welcome to Applebees! My name is Julie, and I will be serving you this evening. May I get you something to drink?" she asked in her nicest waitress voice and an Applebee's smile.

"Is it always this dead in here, Julie?" the man asked as he surveyed the empty dining room, taking off his hat and briefly noting her name badge.

"Wednesday nights are typically slow, unlike Friday nights after the game," she again smiled at her customer.

"Are you into Dillon football?" the man asked, continuing to make small talk during the short walk to the table.

Julie rolled her eyes. "I sorta have to be. My Dad's a Dillon coach."

The customer again looked down at her name badge, as he took a seat in the booth. "You wouldn't by any chance be Julie Taylor, would you?"

"Ummmm," she stammered, studying the man and stalling before giving him unnecessary information. Her close friend and former Applebees trainer, Tyra Collette, had schooled her well about giving a customer any more personal information than was absolutely necessary.

Sensing his question had made the young girl very uncomfortable, the man quickly rephrased. "I'm Mo McArnold. If you're the Julie I think you are, I'm a friend of your parents."

The man returned a friendly smile to Julie's suddenly blank face. She was studying his. Mo McArnold. She had always wondered about this wealthy man of mystery, the man her mother might have married in days gone by. "Ohhhhhh," she nodded as the information clicked. "Yes, I am, and no, I'm not so sure how good of a friend you are to my Dad's face," she said, suddenly feeling awkward again.

Mo quickly dissipated the awkward moment with laughter. "You should have seen what your Dad did _to my nose_," he smiled, rubbing his nose for emphasis. "He blackened _both_ of my eyes!"

Julie gave him a little smile that grew even wider, as she was secretly tickled to hear her Dad had gotten the better of his rival for her mother's affections. Her father, head football coach Eric Taylor, was the most confident and forceful man she'd ever known. Yet whenever the subject of her mother's old flame, Mo, came up, Julie could tell it bothered her father ... to the point of his becoming involved in an old-fashioned fist fight. She couldn't help but be curious as to why her normally _'steady'_ father would be jealous of this man.

"Oh, I go way back with your folks. That brawl was just good, clean man fun. I still think the world of them," Mo good-naturedly explained. "You be sure and tell Tami and Eric that Mo says hello."

"I will," Julie's smile continued. Still searching her customer's face, mostly to see what her mother saw in this guy, she couldn't help but note her Dad was a hundred times more handsome. And yet, Mo was very charming and at ease with himself.

"And you … you are an absolute stunner!" Mo added. "Easy to understand because you have such great genes. Of course, you would have had better genes if I had been the one to marry that gorgeous mother of yours."

There it was, that _"too full of himself"_ part of his personality that Julie's Dad talked about with great disdain.

"Well, thank you, Mr. McArnold?" Julie wasn't sure how to respond to his backhanded compliment.

"Oh, no. I'm _'Uncle Mo,'_ to you, kiddo," the man insisted.

"Okay … Uncle Mo," Julie decided to play along. She needed a tip, and Mo was the only customer in sight. "Could I get you something to drink?"

"Are you old enough to serve alcohol? I'd like a Scaldis if you carry it," the man decisively ordered.

Julie glanced down. "No, I'm not, and yes, we carry Scaldis. I can have the bartender bring you one. Would you like to order something to eat to go with it?"

"Do you have wings? Yeah, start Uncle Mo off with some buffalo wings to go with his ale," the man spoke of himself in the third person, nodding his head, and closing the menu. "And we'll take it from there."

"Can do," Julie returned the nod and left to place the orders.

_Taylor Home_

_Later that night_

Julie arrived home to find her Dad sitting in _"his"_ chair watching game films. Her mom was likely in the back of the house with her baby sister, Gracie. She carefully walked towards the living room.

"Hey Dad," Julie said to announce she was home.

"Hey," Eric answered, adjusting the volume down from the tapes with the remote control. He reached over and acknowledged her arrival home from work by giving his oldest daughter's arm a loving squeeze, as she passed by his chair.

"Have you got a minute?" she asked.

"For you, I've got more than a minute," Eric said and froze the frame of the film's action.

Julie took a seat on the arm of her Dad's recliner. "Okay, I'm going to give you a heads up about something, but you need to promise me first that you won't get upset."

The look on Eric's face changed to one of concern. "It's kinda hard to promise somethin' when I have no idea what it is I'm promisin'." He searched her face. "Are you in some sorta trouble?"

Julie shook her head. "Oh, no. This has nothing to do with me. This has to do with one of your least favorite persons in the world."

Eric then gave his oldest daughter a very puzzled look.

"Mo McArnold is back in town. He came into Applebees tonight," she said. Then, she lovingly placed her small hands on both sides of her Dad's face and turned his head to face her. "I thought it would be better if you heard it from me."

Her Dad didn't say anything, but she could tell by the fallen look in his eyes he was not happy to hear the news. It was further confirmation to her that Mo was the only person in the world who could make her father act as if he was not so sure of himself.

"_And _I also thought it would be good for you to hear that you hurt his nose and blackened _both_ of his eyes," she informed her father.

A tight, closed-lipped smile slowly came over Eric's face that was still in his daughter's hands. "I blackened _both_ his eyes?" Then, a twinkle of light appeared in his eyes.

Julie nodded and smiled. "Oh, yeah."

Eric nodded with a look of satisfaction, and Julie released his face.

"You know what I think?" Julie asked. Answering her own question, she continued. "He's Texas flash. Underneath his black hat and his flashy car, there's really not much there."

"Where did you see his car?" he suddenly raised an eyebrow.

Quickly, she answered to calm him back down. "Out the window, in the parking lot. The lots been so empty, it wasn't hard to see." Then, Julie added, "I am so glad _you_ are my Dad." And she leaned over and gave him the biggest hug ever, around his neck. "You were right," she said as she held him tight. "I saw with my own eyes what you saved me and Gracie from."

Eric wrapped his arms around his daughter and hugged her hard. "Thank you, Monkey Noodle." And then, he kissed her on her forehead. "I love you."

"Love you, too," she smiled. She knew this conversation was going to be tough and was happy it went as well as it did.

"Hey, Jules," Tami said as she joined her husband and daughter in the living room. "How was work?"

"I was just telling Dad that Mo McArnold came into work tonight," Julie informed her mother, still sitting on the arm of the recliner, leaned back and wrapped in her Dad's loving arms.

"Oh?" Tami gave a pensive look and braced herself for Eric's reaction.

"She already gave me a heads up," Eric calmly announced from the recliner.

Surprised, yet happy to see her husband appeared to be unscathed by this unexpected development, Tami gingerly asked her daughter, "Well, what is Mo doing back in town? Did he say?"

Julie looked over at her Mom, in an almost protective posture with her father. "He didn't say. He said he was a friend of both of yours, and he asked me to tell you both, hello ... so _'hello.'_ I sort of disputed the _'friend of yours'_ stuff, but he said you all go way back and that the little brawl was all in good fun."

Eric chuckled with sarcasm. "Hmmmmph ... _'Mo, the Schmo,'_ says it was all in good fun," repeating the comment coming from his arch rival.

"What's a Schmo?" Julie asked.

Tami rolled her big blue eyes. "Your Dad found out that _'schmo'_ means _'jerk' _in Yiddish. And ever since then, that's been his pet name for Mo.'"

"I'm not the one who called him a jerk," Eric reminded his wife.

Tami nodded, "Well, that is true. He can be a jerk, at times."

Julie added, "I caught a little of that tonight."

Eric gave a smug little smile, feeling rather justified tonight by his daughter.

"Was Mo mean to you, Honey?" Tami asked Julie. Her protective mother bear tendencies were beginning to show.

"Oh, no. He's kind of full of himself, but he wasn't mean." Julie reassured her parents, sitting back up on the arm of the recliner. "In fact, he tipped me a hundred dollars tonight. And the car payment I was so worried about making this month is now all taken care of," Julie beamed from ear to ear.

"Julie!" Tami exclaimed. "Is it right to accept a hundred dollar tip? I don't think I like that."

"I know," Julie began to explain. "I told him it was way too much. And he looked around the empty restaurant and said it was his contribution to the _'Applebees' stimulus_ _package.' _He told me to take it, and I did. He left another hundred to tip the cooks, dishwashers, hostess, and the busboy. Since I play hostess _and_ bus my own tables, in addition to serving my tables, I kept my tip and gave the other hundred to the guys in the back. They were all so happy."

Julie paused a minute and then added, "Oh yeah, and he told me to call him Uncle Mo."

"He's _not_ your uncle," Eric leaned over to his daughter, still seated on the arm of his chair, and stated the obvious.

"I know," Julie told him, "but he was my only customer all night, and I kept my eye on the ball which happened to be my tip."

"Since when did you become so mercenary?" Eric asked with a chuckle.

"Since I have a car payment to make," Julie answered right back and then, jokingly, fist bumped her Dad.

"I don't know," Tami sighed. "I still don't like it." After a pause, she said to herself, "Mo's up to something." And she walked away, deep in thought, shaking her head.

_To be continued ..._


	2. Chapter 2

Title: Mo The Schmo (2/3)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Pairing.

Rating: Both Chapter and story is T. There is a suggestive, yet in no way graphic, part in this chapter between a married couple.

Summary: A sequel to "Sore Subject." Tami's old flame returns to Dillon, and Coach is not happy to hear the news. Poor Julie is caught in the crossfire.

Disclaimer: This Friday Night Lights fan fiction occurs at the beginning of Season 4 which has yet to air.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_Applebees_

_The next night_

The lack of a Thursday night dinner crowd was about the same as it had been the night before. However, what was different tonight was that Julie's car payment was in the mail, and she was more than happy to use the downtime to study for her upcoming chemistry test.

What a difference a day made on her outlook. She could breathe easy for another month _and_ her parents were relatively unscathed upon hearing the news that Mo was back in town. In the eyes of this high school girl, life was good.

After about half an hour into her studying, she was somewhat startled by hearing, "Hey, Julie girl. Did you tell your folks I said hello?"

"Oh, hi, Mo," she smiled upon recognition, quickly hiding her book. "Uh, yeah, I sure did."

"That's Uncle Mo, remember?" he laughed. "I bet they were surprised to hear I was back in town?"

"You could call it that," she said in a diplomatic tone. "Would you like to be seated?"

"Yeah, sure. Would you order me a Scaldis? And bring me a menu. I'd like order some food." He was used to rattling off orders.

A moment later, she had seated Mo and handed him a menu.

"So, how are you doing on this fine evening? I can see it's still pretty slow here?" he asked, as he scanned the menu's offerings.

"I'm good," she said, noticing his patter of asking more than one question. "And yes, it is slow again tonight."

"Why are you working? Shouldn't you be out with your boyfriend or out with friends?" He was curious.

"My boyfriend is working, too," she said, noting there is was again. "I work because I need to earn money to make my car and insurance payments."

"Ah," Mo looked up from the menu. "Your folks are trying to instill some financial responsibility into you."

"Um, yeah," Julie said.

"Do you have any idea what you want to do when you leave high school? Aren't you a Senior this year?" he continued to pepper her with double questions.

Julie noted that he asked two questions at a time, very distracting. "Yes, I'm a senior. I really like my journalism classes."

"What's your GPA?" he continued with questions. "Are you an Honors Student?"

"I'm at a 3.85," she reported. Her GPA spoke for itself.

"Ah," he reacted. "You're smart, like your Mom."

Julie looked at him. "My Dad also did very well in school."

"That's great," Mo announced in an attempt to deflect from his obvious omission. "Bet you don't get much of a chance to hone your journalism skills here."

"No," Julie lamented. "This job is pretty much a paycheck. Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful to have the work."

The bartender dropped the bottle of ale on the table and returned to the bar. Taking a good pull from the bottle, Mo, said to Julie, "Yeah, this economy pretty much sucks. I guess you heard I'm building a mall outside of town. Soon, there will be all kinds of jobs for bright young people. And there will be medical offices surrounding the mall. Again, more jobs. We're opening the medical offices first, until the economy improves."

"I've driven by the construction, but I didn't know that was you," Julie crossed her arms in front of her.

"Yeah, well, you know I grew up here, and this is my way of giving a little something back to the town that raised me. I'm especially proud to be able to do something during these tough times." Then, he said, "Hey, I've got an idea. How would you like to work for me and learn how to write press releases? Come work for Uncle Mo?"

Caught completely off guard, she reacted with, "Well ... I _have_ a job."

Julie's head began to spin with thoughts. It took Tyra six months to get her on at Applebees. Jobs were just not that easy to come by in Dillon. On the other hand, if business stayed this slow, Applebees could soon need to lay off some more workers. And then, most of all, there were her parents to consider.

"How much do you make working here a week?" he volleyed. "Minimum wage plus tips?"

Julie laughed a little. There were those double questions, again. "We make below minimum wage plus tips from this vast sea of customers." And she held her hands wide to demonstrate the emptiness of the room.

"What if I told you that you could work for me at my main office after school, Monday – Friday for fifteen hours a week, have your evenings and weekends free, AND I'd pay you $15.00 an hour plus enroll you in our incentive program for profit sharing?" Mo asked with wide eyes.

This guy was like a big kid. His enthusiasm was infectious. It was then that Julie caught an inkling of the spark that perhaps her mother saw in him many years ago.

"_And_ you would get some experience that is directly pertinent to your career goal of journalism. It would look _great_ on your college applications," Mo expanded his sales pitch. "It would be a paid internship."

Julie could not help but take note that he was very good at this.

"You'd have to give notice here. This is a small town, and you do not want to burn any bridges," Mo continued. "But I'm sure they could find a replacement for you very quickly in this depressed job market."

"It sounds great," Julie said. And it did. It sounded like a dream situation for a teen age girl, to have her evenings and weekend free. "But I have an obstacle."

"Uncle Mo says that obstacles are only opportunities in disguise," he smiled. Then, he noticed the forlorn look on her face. He read faces for a reaction. It's what he did. "Your folks aren't still sore at me, are they? Really?"

Julie struggled with how much tell him. She didn't know him and yet, she did know how much her Dad disliked him. On the other hand, her Dad wasn't exactly unbiased where Mo was concerned. Suddenly, she could understand her mother's position.

Her hesitancy to answer the question told Mo all he needed to know. "Wow, I've put you in a tough spot, haven't I? I sort of figured your Dad might still be sore, but I didn't figure your Mom would be, too. Is Tami mad at me?"

It was the first time he had referred to her mother by her name. Julie could read the hurt in his eyes.

"They are a matched set," Julie reminded her Mom's former flame.

"Do you think it would help? If I talked to them?" he asked.

Julie paused. "I don't know. They seemed pretty upset."

"Ahhhhh," Mo reacted. "That means they care. We don't get upset about things we don't care about."

"Uncle Mo," Julie tried using another tactic. "I love my Dad. He's a good guy, and he's been through a lot. I don't want to see him get hurt. I _really_ mean that."

Mo looked down. "Tough break ... I read about it in the paper." He was referring to Eric being replaced at Dillon High and moved to a school that had been closed for decades.

"My Mom loves my Dad more than I do," Julie looked up at him with her big eyes. "She doesn't want to see him get hurt, either." She decided it was time to give this guy a reality check.

Mo took in a deep breath. "I think it's time for Uncle Mo to make amends. You let me take care of this. Job offer still stands."

"I don't think it will be easy," she warned him.

Very seriously, he answered her concern with, "Nothing worthwhile ever is."

Mo proceeded to order the grilled salmon and a salad, and then, he left the same big tip as he had left the night before for Julie and guys in the back.

_Taylor Home_

_Later that night_

Lying in bed, his body spent from making love to his beautiful wife, Eric extended his arm to her. Tami immediately placed her head on his shoulder and snuggled in close, as he wrapped his arm around her.

"Julie told me somethin' tonight that's botherin' me," Eric whispered in the dark. "Mo came into Applebees again tonight and offered her a job."

"What?" Tami asked. "Didn't I tell you he was up to something?"

Still recovering from their extraordinary release, Eric took in a deep breath to steady his breathing. "Yeah, you did."

"Well? What did she say?" Tami wanted to know.

"She told him she thought we'd have a problem with it," Eric pulled his wife even closer to him, "but that wasn't good enough for Mo." After taking in another deep breath, he added, "He told Julie that he needs to make amends to us. So, we now have fair warnin'."

"Warning about what?" she looked up at him.

"Warnin' that either Mo's gonna come talk to us, and we'd better know what we're gonna say," he looked down at her, their eyes connecting.

Now, it was Tami's turn to take a deep breath. "I don't think I want Julie working for Mo."

"I _know_ I don't want her to work for him," Eric agreed, kissing Tami on her temple. "He tipped her another hundred tonight. Do you know what that kind of money does to a kid's head?"

"Well, that does it. Involving our daughter, giving her big money without our permission is going _too_ far. I think I'll have a little talk with Mr. Mo McArnold tomorrow," Tami declared. She couldn't help but feel as if the whole, ongoing Mo thing was all her fault. After all, this guy was from _her_ past.

"Babe," Eric gently kissed her again on her temple, "Don't you think that's exactly what he _wants_ you to do? Come to him?"

Tami then turned a little more, facing her husband. "Well then, what do _you_ think we should do?"

There was a little hostility in Tami's voice, but Erin chalked it up to frustration. He knew she felt bad about this guy and honestly didn't know what to do.

"He told Julie he needs to make amends. I say, let him come to us. The ball is now in our territory," he calmly explained. "Julie promised me she wouldn't take the job without our okay. I'm just glad we're forewarned."

"You're right, Hon," she acquiesced, lowering herself back down into his arms. Wrapping her long legs around his, she drew herself close to him. "We're 100 percent agreed on this subject."

He held her tighter. Tami needed his quiet, strong and protective resolve and was appreciative of him not becoming upset with her over this latest development with Mo. She couldn't help but notice that Eric had come a long, long way since that embarrassing brawl at the restaurant.

"Hmmm," he moaned at her touch, his body immediately responding to hers. Smiling with his eyes closed, he whispered, "You wanna go for two?"

Tami raised herself up on one arm and then, answered him with a slow, sultry kiss.

_To be continued ..._


	3. Chapter 3

Title: Mo The Schmo (3/3)

Author: Romantique

Email:

Classification: Eric/Tami Pairing.

Rating: T for this chapter for some language.

Summary: A sequel to "Sore Subject." Tami's old flame returns to Dillon, and Coach is not happy to hear the news. Poor Julie is caught in the crossfire.

Disclaimer: This Friday Night Lights fan fiction occurs at the beginning of Season 4 which has yet to air.

Legal: These characters do not belong to me. I'm just a fan and have not made a dime. Please email me to obtain permission to post.

_East Dillon High School_

_Coach's Office_

_Friday morning_

Eric looked up from his desk to find Mo standing in the doorway of his office. Mo jokingly ducked and covered his face in a boxing move, as if to protect himself. "Hey, Eric, is it safe for me to come in?"

Even though Eric knew he would probably run into Mo sometime soon, he still winced at the sight of him, almost as an uncontrollable reflex. In trying to prepare himself for this unavoidable event, Eric wasn't sure how he'd react at seeing this guy for the first time since their fight. The last thing Eric said to him after their brawl was to stay the hell away from him and Tami. Now, today, Eric discovered he was still very angry. It took all the restraint he could muster to occupy the same space with _'Mo the_ _Schmo.'_

"Are you still sore at me, Coach?" Mo asked.

"What are you doin' here?" Eric coldly answered the question with one of his own. He was well versed on Mo's game of _Twenty Questions_.

Eric was irritated, and rightfully so. It was obvious he was busy in paperwork on game day, and Mo had dropped by without an appointment because he knew Eric wouldn't want to see him.

"I want to smoke the peace pipe, bury the hatchet," Mo began. "I'm back in town, going to be here for awhile. We're going to run into one another; it's inevitable in this small town. Like me, you and Tami are community leaders. We run in the same circles. I would like to see us move past this and get along."

Eric couldn't help but think this guy was a like neighbor's unleashed dog, pissing in his yard. Mo had absolutely no respect for another person's yard, another person's boundaries. Mo placed someone like Buddy Garrity in the Pee Wee League of egos.

"And exactly how do you propose we do that?" Eric flashed a very intimidating stare. "I don't like you, don't want to be around you, and I _don't_ want you around my family."

"Hell, Eric, I don't like you either. Never have," Mo answered, his phony smile turning into a scowl of his own. "But we all have to work with people we don't like."

"You obviously want somethin' from us, but the problem is ... we want nothin' from you," Eric continued to stare through him. "Maybe if you'd just come clean and say what it is you really want, you could get on out of my office, sooner rather than later."

To break the intensity of Eric's stare, Mo looked at the floor and then, at Eric. "I offered your daughter a paid internship with my company where she could learn how to write press releases. As a student interested in journalism, it would look great on her college applications; a part-time job pertinent to her education that works around her school schedule ... A job that pays more than she's making now. Are you going to let your pride stand in the way of a great opportunity for her in a town that has so few?"

"Tami and I don't appreciate you throwin' your money around our daughter. A hundred dollar tip for a $20.00 tab at Applebees? That's quite a _'disconnect'_ from reality. For you to do that, not once but twice, without our permission, is crossin' a parental boundary you're _never_ gonna cross again." Ready for Mo's visit, Eric reached into his pocket and pulled out $200 in cash. Then, he looked Mo straight in the eye. "This is what you gave her … and you're gonna take it back."

Eric stood up from behind his desk and handed the money in an envelope to Mo who would not take it. "Aw, c'mon, Eric. I didn't mean to step on your toes. When I found out that Julie was your and Tami's daughter, I mean, she's like family to me. I didn't mean any harm by it."

Eric slowly walked over to Mo and physically put the money in Mo's hand, while looking him dead in the eye. "Tami and the girls are _MY_ family … not _YOURS_," he said while pointing his fingers to his own chest for emphasis. Then, he pointed his finger at Mo. "You need to accept and respect that fact."

"Is Tami with you on this?" Mo asked, finally taking the money.

"She and I are in complete agreement on the subjects of you interferin' with our family and throwin' your money around our minor daughter," Eric informed him. "Now, if you'll excuse me, it's game day," Eric said as he sat back down to his paperwork. "But then, you knew that."

_Later that afternoon_

Not long after leaving Eric's school, from his car phone, Mo McArnold called Directory Assistance and asked to be connected to Appleby's.

When the phone was answered, he asked, "Hello, could I speak with the manager?"

Once connected, he said, "Hi, my name is Mo McArnold."

"Oh, I know who you are," the young, male manager sounded pleased to be talking to Mo who was somewhat of a local celebrity.

"What's your name?" Mo asked.

"It's Ryan, Ryan Court," he answered.

"Well, Ryan, I'm going to be holding staff meetings several times a week, and I need a place to meet and feed my staff. I wanted to talk to you about possibly holding them over at your restaurant," he proposed.

"You bet Mr. McArnold. We could easily accommodate you," Ryan said. He could use all the business he could find.

"I'm going to give you a Purchase Order number for our first meeting on Monday for lunch at noon. There will be 40 of us for that meeting. And we'll have another meeting next Friday at noon, again for the same 40 of us. There will be more meetings further out that I can schedule when I come in on Monday. How about I give you a P.O. for $5,000.00 to start, and you can just take each meeting's charges out of that?" Mo proposed. "You can call Sandy, my personal secretary at 982-4440 to get any further information you need."

"I want to thank you for your business, Mr. McArnold," Ryan said. The young store manager couldn't believe his good fortune. His store numbers had been down for months. These meetings would certainly help during the recession.

"You're welcome. You know, I was in your restaurant the past two nights. Your business was pretty much non-existent," Mo said.

"It's true. The recession has had a negative impact on our dinner traffic, except on the weekends," Ryan volunteered.

Mo gave the restaurant what they wanted, now it was time to get what he wanted. "So, you would agree my business is very much needed and appreciated at this time."

"Oh, yes, absolutely, sir," Ryan answered, "it's very much appreciated."

"Good. Then, you won't mind doing a favor for me," Mo began and explained exactly what he wanted to make this a win-win deal.

_Applebees Restaurant_

_Friday night_

It was football night at Applebees for both East and West Dillon High and the restaurant traffic was better than usual. Julie did well on tips. In addition to the two big tips from Mo this week, she thought to herself she would now be able to put some money back into her savings.

As the evening waned and the crowd thinned, Julie began cleaning her vacant stations in preparation of closing. It was at that time that Ryan walked up to her and said he needed to see her.

"Julie, you've been a terrific employee, but as you know, our business continues to be way down despite corporate television advertising. It's down 50 percent from this month last year," Ryan began. "I hate to do this, but we need to lay you off until business improves. Unfortunately, we don't see that happening in the foreseeable future." He handed her an envelope. "Here's your final paycheck. I'm sorry, Julie."

Julie took the envelope, fighting to hold back tears. She was in shock, trying to let the last sixty seconds register to her brain.

"You can just go. You don't need to finish closing," Ryan said, and then, he walked away. He had fired so many employees over the past six months, but it was something he could never get used to.

Trying hard to hold it together, Julie went to the staff room and grabbed her purse. Then, she began a long, lonely walk to the front of the restaurant. Adrenaline was pulsing through her body making it feel almost like an out of body experience.

As she approached the front door, Mo McArnold stopped her.

"Hey, Julie," he began, and then looked at her face. "Kiddo, are you okay?"

"Wha- …Uh, yeah, I'm fine," she tried to respond like a normal person. "Um, Mo, I gotta go."

"Hey, wait a minute. You don't look so fine," he persisted. "What's wrong? I can tell something is wrong."

Still in shock, she heard herself tell him, "I just got laid off. I need to leave." She could feel tears welling up in her eyes.

"This is none of my business, but you don't look okay to be driving," he said. "You look like you need to sit down."

She looked at him with a vacant stare. "Maybe, but I need to get out of here," she said. She wanted to leave this place and then, she wanted to talk to Matt.

"How about if I drive you to Antonio's down the street? We could talk, get you leveled off before you drive anywhere," Mo suggested.

Julie felt very much not herself, not okay to drive. "Okay," she agreed. And she followed Mo to his car.

Less than five minutes later, they were walking into Antonio's Pizzeria. Mo flashed a twenty dollar bill and got them immediately seated in the restaurant session at a private booth. Julie looked at the clock. It was only 10:30 p.m., but it seemed so much later. Time was moving very slowly.

Mo tapped her hand with his finger. "I'm not a proponent of underage drinking, but you look like you could really use something a little stronger than a soda. Do you drink beer or wine?"

"Maybe a beer. Just one," she answered. "I have to drive home."

Mo passed the waitress a fifty dollar bill and asked for two of whatever was on tap. He also asked for small cheese pizza.

"So, they laid you off," he finally broached the subject. "I'm not surprised. That place has been dead two of the three nights I've been there. Restaurant overhead is ridiculously high." After a beat, he added, "Besides, you have a very lucrative offer to consider. So, it's not like you are without options."

The waitress then arrived with the beers and left them on their table. After she left, Mo raised his glass and said, "Here's to new endeavors … whatever they might be."

Julie clicked her mug to his and took a sip of the beer.

"I went and saw your Dad today," Mo divulged. "It didn't go well."

"Not surprised," Julie responded, taking another sip of the beer.

"Look, I don't know you very well," Julie told the man. "But I know my parents don't like you. And you coming to me and offering me a dream job when you and I both know it's never going to happen is pretty damn cruel."

Just then, the pizza arrived. Mo encouraged her to put a slice in her stomach to help mitigate the beer.

"Wow, you looked like your mother, just now," he flashed a smile.

"I'm my mother's daughter. And I'm my father's daughter. And I won't cross them on this one," she stared at him, taking another drink. It felt good to take her frustrations out on someone who deserved it.

"Look, I'm being very sincere here. Your Dad flat out told me he doesn't like me. To be honest, I don't' like him either. I don't know what to do. I don't know how to talk to him. You know him. Tell me, what do think I need to do to smooth this over with your folks?" he asked.

Julie almost laughed. "You really want me to tell you what I think? You want me to be honest?" It felt good to pepper him with double questions the way he questioned her. She took another bite of her slice.

Mo tapped her hand again. "Yes, I do."

"Why? Your interest in our family doesn't make any sense. I mean, you're a really old boyfriend of my Mom's from a long, long time ago. She didn't marry you. She fell in love with someone else. Over twenty years ago," Julie let it rip. "Get over it already."

"I wish I could," Mo shook his head. "Your Mom is the one who got away."

"I'm a senior in high school, and I never even heard about you until you showed up in town last year. My Mom doesn't sit around thinking about you. She's moved on with her life. She built a good life with my Dad. They have two children together," Julie took another sip of the beer. "She moved on a long time ago, and never looked back. Instead of wishing her well, you've done nothing but …"

Mo looked at her. "But, what? What have I done wrong?"

Julie let out a deep sigh. "If you really cared about my Mom, you'd let her go. You'd wish her well. You'd be supportive of her choice because it was the right choice for her."

There was an awkward silence, and then, Julie continued. "I hate to burst your bubble, but my parents ... after all these years, they're still in love. I only wish I can find someone and have something remotely like what they have."

The awkward silence continued. Then, she again continued. "You cover your feelings and act like … a jerk. The only way my parents know how to deal with you, is to stay away from you."

"Wow, Julie girl. You really know how to lay it on the line," he said.

"So, I'm told," she said, placing the crust back on her plate. "Thanks for the beer and the pizza, but I need to get home." And she pulled out her wallet and peeled off $180.00 in twenty dollar bills. "You need you to take this back. I don't feel right about taking this much money from anyone. I owe you $20.00. I had to put gas in my car on the way to work." Julie had pulled the money back out of her savings account earlier that day.

Mo stopped her. "Julie, your Dad already gave me back the $200.00 I gave to you, this morning." And he pulled out the envelope of cash from his jacket pocket and showed it to her. "We're good." After a beat, he added. "You're right. You are your mother's daughter. And you are your father's daughter, too."

Out of a job and fearful of her financial future, Julie was proud to be the daughter of both Eric and Tami Taylor.

fin-


End file.
